Vantramps

Heidi Won!

2012-02-28T14:53:00.001-08:00

To say that leaves poor Taj a bit concerned is far beyond an understatement! Terrified would be much closer! There has always been the threat of chickens looming, but not being one to only go half way, my Sweet Heidi has upped her game and added a miniature cow! Well, as one who is easily sucked in by cute little animal faces and my precious wife, I completely caved.

Sorry Taj, Deal with it! Okay, just kidding, there will not be cows tied to Taj's bumper or chickens driving (Go ahead, I left that door wide open). There is however a new plan! A major change actually, and it is one that has been coming for some time.

Us road loving VanTramps are going to start looking for a little piece of land here on the Olympic Peninsula to do an off-grid something or other...Not sure what exactly that will end up being quite yet, but likely at least a "docking station" for Taj and maybe an outdoor kitchen (firebrick oven), possibly a craft studio and or maybe even a cabin. We are just in planning stages and saving up so who knows what the final result will be. I do know that Taj will be a continuous part of it and the modding and fun will continue.

For the blog, it just means there will be a wider variety of topics shared. A lot more homesteading, gardening and off-grid type topics. Also, of course at some point, cute little cow pictures and chickens too. You will probably start to see more of our hearts and beliefs being shared as well, I hope that doesn't scare anyone away, we are the same, just feeling like we have been holding back a lot that matters to us.

On that note, assuming no mass exodus by our readers, we will share more of our plans/goals soon!

Still Here!

2012-02-11T17:07:00.000-08:00

We are still here that is! I am not so sure about the Glines Canyon Dam shown above though. They have finally been working to remove it in recent months. As part of the Elwha River Restoration, it is a very cool project that I may write more about in the future.

Ever had one of those days where you wake up and wonder what in the world you are doing? I had one of them a few weeks back. It has been building for a while, but for some reason, something clicked that day and it all came together in my head. I had been in a bit of a holding pattern or perhaps even a "funk" of sorts.

I am pretty sure it is just that I am interested in so many various things that I lose focus. One of those things affected of course, has been the blog. No writer's block or lack of material, rather the opposite. I always have a ton of topics in my head. How does a person decide? I keep getting stuck at the part about catching a tiger by it's toe. There is never any info on how to catch him by the toe or where he gets $50 to pay even once, much less every day...

Pretty sure I could sneak up on that sleepy little guy, but I really doubt he can cover the payment. And in any case, I couldn't force myself to wake him.

I have never wanted to make this a daily blog where I feel compelled to share the dull stuff like what we eat every day or give a daily weather update. Not that I think there is anything wrong with sharing that stuff in a blog, it's just not my style I guess. I value the time of our readers here and will always do my best to hopefully share something worthy of that time. So on that note, as in the past, I won't be doing daily posts, but I do plan to get back at it on a much more consistent level. I also have some new and hopefully interesting topics to share! Lots of mods in the works, some new plans, a new fun skill/hobby and a bunch more stuff I have always wanted to talk about.

Thanks for sticking with us during my extended break! I will do my best to make sure it was worth your patience :)

Finding Gold

2011-10-31T13:20:00.000-07:00

If you squint a little, maybe stick out your tongue and tip your head to the left, you will see there is a little gold in the bottom of that pan. A very little gold... This was found in a previous prospecting trip from a few years back.(the horrible picture is from then too).

There are some really great things about gold prospecting as a hobby that fits very well with the VanTramping lifestyle!

1) It is peaceful and entertaining. - Sitting beside a bubbling creek, slowly swirling away the layers of lighter material until you can see if the glimmer of gold shows up in the bottom of your pan.

2) Gold often is found in some of the most beautiful areas and that just happens to fit with our preferred surroundings!

3) You can make a little income from it. - You need a bit more than what I have above, and you likely won't get wealthy from it, but the price of gold is up there(about $1700 a troy ounce now) and it shows no signs of going down.

4) You don't need much equipment. - A good gold pan, small shovel, and a snuffer bottle is enough to get started.

There are many prospecting clubs out there to join which gives you access to their gold claims which many can be parked on or near, overnight. A couple good examples are:

http://www.washingtonprospectors.org

and of course

http://www.goldprospectors.org

Over the years, I have hunted gold with various methods including metal detectors, highbankers, gas powered dredges and more. They all work well, but I am finally settled down to just using a small 2' sluice box and basic panning gear. I really enjoy the more relaxed, simple and quiet way it works out.

Right now, we have our gear packed neatly in Taj's storage areas, but in the near future, I would like to get a small framed backpack and configure it all so it can be grabbed quickly.

Prospecting is definitely a fun hobby! I am always curious how many of our friends on the road enjoy it too!

Personal defense and more.

2011-10-29T14:50:00.000-07:00

The subject of personal defense and firearms tends to be a very "hot button" topic these days, but it is a subject that we take very seriously and we would like to share how it affects our VanTramping lifestyle. I hope it is of some value to you, our friends.

For Heidi and I, the decision to buy and carry firearms was based on a couple basic concepts. We never walk in fear, but from personal experience over the years as well as being aware of current trends in crime, being more able to protect each other is a solid reason. The fact that we enjoy shooting and feel like guns are a pretty safe investment also helped us decide.

We both have our CPLs and now carry the above Beretta PX4s pretty regularly. Heidi's is the 9MM on top, mine is chambered in .40 S&W. We recently joined the local indoor range and took a class to improve our shooting, both were good decisions.

Carrying concealed from state to state is one aspect that many consider complicated. Figuring out which states have reciprocity with Washington was not difficult. See here: Reciprocity maps If you know your route or have an idea, it is easy to figure out how to handle each state and their laws for dealing with carry or transport of firearms & ammo.

The 12 Gauge Mossberg is setup for home defense in it's current form, but is soon to gain an extra barrel with more length so it can optionally be used for hunting nummy tasting grouse and other game birds.

The air rifle, made by Beeman, is more for plinking and target shooting for now. It is capable of use for small game, but so far, unless there is some extreme need, that won't happen. I like furry little critters too much. All of our firearms fit easily in Taj and have their own specific locations.

To end this post, I will say that one of the things that we value most in this VanTramping lifestyle involves the pursuit of self sufficiency. Having the tools to defend yourself, without relying on Law Enforcement, (who likely won't be in the area when you most need them), is just one more step toward that goal.

Do I have to leave? Really?

2011-10-26T11:33:00.000-07:00

Okay, I was kidding about the title, sorta :) This pic is the view I had from my hospital bed. That is the bay here in Port Angeles. You can see the Coast Guard station out on the end of the "spit" to the right. It was pretty cool watching the CG choppers fly in and out for drills.

I am glad to be out of there and feeling tons better! Thank You to everyone for all the sweet comments! I didn't bring my computer in the room with me, but Heidi had hers and let me know about them as they came in. Having that kind of support is really encouraging!

The Olympic Medical Center here in PA is really a nice hospital. Very kind and thorough staff as well. My first room in the place last Tuesday didn't have the same spectacular view but was still very comfortable. The doctor, who was incredibly nice, said "Hey, I think we can do better than this" and had the staff move me! Don't find that kind of treatment very often! Easily the best hospital experience I have had ever! The food was even pretty decent, ordered from a menu, room service style.

As nice as it was, I am extremely happy to be out and back to having fun! Stay well friends, I will try to do the same!

Where's Mike!

2011-10-19T12:32:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to let you all know that Michael is in the hospital.... and doing well. For those of you waiting on a return email from him, he'll be getting back to you when he gets out. He thanks you for your patience.

~Heidi

"Here fishy fishy"

2011-09-19T11:25:00.000-07:00

For the past few months especially, Heidi and I have been a lot less active online for fun reasons. We have been focusing more of our time on our hobbies, especially those that are more seasonal. I feel quite guilty that I haven't been sharing that with you all! So without further delay....

I confess! We have been fishing! Well at least that is some of what we have been up to. Notice, however, that I didn't say "we have been catching".

Yeah, those illusive fishies are still swimming around in the beautiful streams of the Olympic Peninsula without much reel(pun intended) danger from us.

I should speak for myself I guess. They were not in danger of me catching them. My focus really has been on finally learning to use my fly fishing gear that I have been hauling around for a few years now.

I grew up up using more familiar open face reels and weighted lures but something about fly fishing seems more interesting to me these days. Maybe I just watched "A River Runs Through It" a few too many times! Whatever it is, I really have been enjoying learning it so far.

Heidi, for now at least, is still using an open face reel and actually catching some little fish. Very ambitious little fish considering they have been very close in size to the lures she has been using! She has had a lot of fun too.

The fish will find their way onto our grill eventually! Until that happens, it's a good thing we enjoy pizza!

3 Little Things

2011-08-29T17:27:00.000-07:00

A guitar stand, a nebulizer and a flashlight, three things that have pretty much nothing to do with each other, but are perfect examples of ideal items for Vantramping.

Starting with the flashlight; Compared to our 2D LED Maglite that has always been with us up to now, this little Fenix TK15 is a fraction of the size and weight, yet is much more effective and multi-purpose. The Maglite is heavy enough to maybe clobber someone with and has a claimed output of 114 Lumens.

The little Fenix is not so heavy, but is very solid and equipped with scalloped bezels on both ends which could be used for self defense purposes. At 337 Lumens, you won't need to hit someone with it to defend yourself though! This thing is bright! It has 4 levels of brightness as well as a quite debilitating strobe function. It is well suited for self defense, search and rescue or perhaps signaling when needed and even functions well as a tactical light for firearms use.

The guitar stand isn't so multi-function, but is much nicer than most stands available and folds to a small enough size that it will fit right inside many guitar cases. I love this stand! It was included in this post because of how much more convenient it has proven to be compared to a regular folding stand. It is made by Cooperstand

The nebulizer, an Omron Microair, has been one of the best purchases yet for our life in the van. For me, with my CF, there is no getting around the fact that I need to have a nebulizer available always.

The old machine that this little gem replaced was a far different animal! It was basically a filtered 110V air compressor that fed pulsed air through plastic tubing connected to a nebulizer cup which vaporized the medicine (Albuterol in my case). It was a loud, cumbersome rig which did a swell job of fogging up the van with wasted meds, and at least once, getting the cops called at a park because "That crazy hippie in the van was smoking a bong!!" LOL! I suppose to some it probably looked that way...

The Microair is an amazing device. It will run for months on two standard AA batteries, is dead silent and has a momentary switch function that only fogs the medicine when you want it too (during inhale) so none is wasted coating everything else. It doesn't require any other cups or hoses and cleaning is much easier and faster than the old rig. The Microair is smaller than a can of pop which makes it extremely easy to store as well as carry along outside the van as needed.

3 little things, yep, they are! 3 wonderful little examples that show how a bit of research and careful shopping can improve your Vantramping life!

Lyre River Campground - Free Camping at it's best!

2011-07-05T14:32:00.000-07:00

I hesitate to publish this post for fear I may be chased out of this wonderful state! We like to tell people that "Washington is closed" or the more common, "it always rains here and is miserable at best"....I doubt either of those methods ever work, but I am always pleasantly surprised by the serenity that can be found here and that it remains far from crowded.

The Lyre River Campground is one of the many DNR campgrounds here that can be used by anyone with the new Discover Pass. Before this month, there was no such requirement. This is a new thing that the state has come up with to help with the budget. I don't mind it at all! There are rangers in the parks & campgrounds a few hours every day getting things in order and keeping them nice. Seems like a very small price to pay!

Can you spot Taj in the pic above? No, you aren't seeing double :) Of course Taj is on the right and "Glorie B", the trusty vanhome of Kris(Bittermoon), is at left. Kris has been in the area with her cute pup Lexi for a little while now and we have been lucky enough to share much of that time with her.

That strange green bucket with a stick protruding from it is actually a very cool rocket stove we purchased from Stovetec. Perhaps not easy to tell, but this is an action shot where it is doing an excellent job of cooking our nummy black-eye-pea and ham dinner(with Heidi's help of course)!

These are all shots taken while standing in our campsite. Sleeping with the river rambling so close is an easy thing to do! Such a soothing sound! We had a really great weekend hanging out, enjoying the peaceful beauty of the area!

We hope you find your way here too at some point, but just remember to make sure everyone knows how miserable and rainy it is :) I kinda suck at keeping secrets!

Salt Creek - Our Second Anniversary

2011-07-04T13:03:00.000-07:00

Heidi and I recently spent a wonderful weekend at Salt Creek Campground here on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington. We were celebrating our 2nd wedding anniversary! Best two years of my life so far!! The picture above is the view from the edge of our campsite looking out over the Strait of San Juan De Fuca.

We don't often stay at parks where there is an overnight fee, especially here on the OP where there are so many beautiful places a person can stay free. Salt Creek is special however! There is always a chance of seeing a whale passing by in the Strait or a family of otters playing in the tide. Healthy deer roam around the camp area without fear and squirrels delight in chasing each other from tree to tree! Beautiful scenery, cute critters and clean, fresh smelling salt air with just a hint of cedar, what's not to love?!!

Taj from the fence-line,,,

The fence-line from Taj.

Heidi and I have really been enjoying our summer so far and we hope you have as well!

BTW: These pictures were taken on the weekend of June 20th, but since today is July 4th;

"Happy Independence Day!!!"

Be The Change

2011-05-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

Rialto Beach...It is yet another of our amazing Washington treasures that helps me gain perspective.

One of my all time favorite Emerson quotes is;

"What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say."

It goes very well with the title of this post borrowed from Gandhi.

It also fits well with one of my favorite Bible verses, 1 John, 3:18 which says

"Let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth".

When I remember these things, I always think back to debates and discussions I have had in various groups and forums online. In the end they are just words, easily discarded as opinion.

I am glad we started this blog. It is a place we can share what we do and how we live, hopefully with some evidence that it isn't just words, but a life that is proving itself to be more rewarding each day. Perhaps not for everyone, but it has definitely been the right lifestyle for us.

Yahoo Vandwellers

2011-04-15T16:36:00.000-07:00

For those who didn't know, the Yahoo Vandwellers group has been a big factor in both Heidi and my life around the last 4 to 5 years. We met online there, and over time, fell for each other completely. The picture of the "smooching" vans is from our first night spent together when we met up in Salt Lake City. Now this year, June 20th to be exact, we are celebrating our second wedding anniversary and both of us still consider ourselves vandwellers and remain a part of the group.

For a bit over a year now I have been one of a few moderators on the group as well. This post is really a bit of an announcement to my vandweller friends that I am going to no longer function in that capacity. I just don't want to commit the amount of time that is required to actively do the job any longer. With 7000 plus members, it really has become a very big job even shared among the few active mods. Some adjustments have been made behind the scenes and new help has been found so I am feeling better about it.

Thanks to the decision to stop moderating vandwellers, I will have a lot more available time to dedicate to our life of fun and blogging again as well as the jewelry work, Taj mods, my neglected guitar, my under-utilized mountain bike, fly fishing, prospecting, sling-shot fun and and and... lots more stuff!

So that's my big news for the day :) Yay for more time!!

My Artistic Side

2011-04-09T13:30:00.000-07:00

Since I have been so quiet lately, I wanted to share at least one of the projects I have been up to. The project has absolutely nothing to do with Mr Hotdog in the above image, but someone, somewhere considered that thing art so I thought I would share him with my blogger friends! Mr Hotdog (who I find a bit creepy actually) is no longer at the location shown. I am guessing he was stolen by some bored group of teens :) Heidi thinks he may be getting a makeover... I guess he does look like he could use one.

Okay, so back on track here.

I have been putting the Foredom (seen in my last post) to use. I am in process of building a couple LED sconce style lights for Taj. They are of a design I have had in mind for quite a while, utilizing cut, frosted wine bottles, a bit of copper and a little wood. I will hopefully have some pictures for you this coming week.

My list of projects for Taj this year is huge as I have mentioned before. Now that it is warmer out, I am getting into gear and starting on many of them. I have noticed lately that the artistic potential of the various mods I am working on is more on my mind. Modifying Taj really could be considered a hobby even though the mods are always designed to make our lives/home more comfortable and efficient.

I am curious how many other of our nomadic living friends out there shares this same sort of addiction :) Do you enjoy creatively modifying your traveling home or is it more about just meeting a need?

Dremel Shmemel...

2011-03-28T17:49:00.000-07:00

I have always been a fan of rotary tools! There is almost no limit to the things you can make with them and their uses cover a wide range of applications. The Foredom flexshaft system above is my new favorite tool! So far I haven't been able to actually perform any tasks with it due to my strange need to stare at it repeating "my precious" in a whispery voice :)

Also in the pic above, there are a few additions to the base config that I went ahead and bought now knowing I would use them. The bench mounting yolk, the hammer handpiece, desktop speed controller and the polishing bit set should help with a lot of the jewelry work I have in mind. I still have tons of diamond tipped as well as stone points and other cutters left unused from dead Dremels of days past.

I should have some fun creations to post soon!

My Mom and her great RV adventure!

2011-03-15T16:28:00.000-07:00

Moms, ya gotta love em! I have to tell ya that ours keeps us perhaps a bit more entertained than most.

Her and Jerry and their tiny, attitudinal dog/cat (I can't really say for sure) have been on an incredible RV adventure this year for the first time as retired folk. They bought the above class A (Lucy) while still in MN and set out on the road.

Well, the adventure thus far has been fun as I understand, and filled with all the standard NewB RVer scenarios of course. Mom always does it up right ya know!

At any rate, I get this phone call the other night describing a scene that I did my best to replicate for you above with GIMP (my favorite image editing system). Luckily, all is well other than a now somewhat smaller retaining wall at the RV park they stayed in and a little dent in Lucy's ladder.

I realize it might be considered bratty to make such a post about one's own mother, but I had to do it. She sent ME a dog toy in the mail the other day! A DOG toy! LOL! Yeah we love her!

Why I follow you...

2011-03-10T10:39:00.000-08:00

So many blogs, so little time! Seriously, Heidi and I enjoy reading blogs for so many reasons, because of the great pictures, the cool things we learn, the people we get to know, humor, inspiration, and the list goes on and on.

One thing we try to do is always follow the blogs of those who follow us. Just a little reciprocity. On that note, I have been way behind on adding new blogs so, if you are one of our "Wise and Wonderful People" and you have a blog that I don't follow, shoot me an email or comment here and I will come follow you!

Of course we love all our readers and are grateful that you choose to take the time to read our ramblings!

I wanted to make mention of a few things I have been working on(though not quite done with). If you glance over there <--- you will see a new link "Great Blogs & Links". If you click on it, it will take you to a page where I am putting links to everyone's blogs and other resources I think you might find interesting. Also, just under that you might notice that it says "last 5 new follower's blogs". That one is self explanatory I think :)

I have quite a few ideas I want to incorporate into the blog over the next few weeks however, if anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear them!

The picture was taken a few years back on the coast of Oregon along Highway 101. I love that drive!

Focus!

2011-03-08T18:05:00.000-08:00

For a little while now, I have felt a bit like I was in a "Blogger Funk"... After thinking about it however, I know that isn't really the case. At least I don't think so. I have no shortage of post-worthy material and no lack of desire to put it here. Lately, I have just been failing at one of my normally strongest attributes which is focus.

I made a post a while back, Regaining Balance, which is related to this whole focus thing as well. It all ties together. In recent months I have neglected both balance and focus. I always have a gazillion projects and areas of research which is fine, I just have to remember to focus on one at a time so I can knock em off my list!

Heidi has had no such lapse! She has really been on a roll, experimenting with all kinds of cool stuff! Not just experimenting, but obtaining results. Check our other blog (really it is her blog), Vansteaders, there is usually something cool to read there!

(Yeah I am biased but it's true)

So now I am going to declare the "funk" or blog-blackout or whatever it was over and finish a bunch of the projects for this place I have been working on. Thanks to all of my "Wise and Wonderful People" (followers) and readers for sticking around! Interesting note: My Dad said he would stop following me if I didn't post something pretty quick LOL!

Missed Mod, LED Dash Illumination

2011-02-19T10:48:00.000-08:00

Wow that is a horrible picture! Sorry about that :( It really doesn't give a very good idea at how well this mod worked out. In reality, that eerie glow doesn't show up to the human eye. The numbers and letters are illuminated perfectly with a bright but very pleasant blue color and the overall appearance is much improved IMHO.

I titled this as a "missed mod" because it was actually done last year but the lousy picture made me hesitant to post it. I thought I could get a better one with a higher quality camera, now I know better, I need a better photographer! Good thing I don't have to make a living on my mad camera skillz....

The bulbs were purchased from Super Bright LEDs. There are several options to replace the original #194 bulbs (shown on the right above), on the left, you can see the 4 LED version I opted for. I ordered 12, all blue which was enough to replace all the original bulbs. If I had to do it over, I would have ordered a few green and red to match the turn signal arrows and various warning lamps. Now it is all very blue!

This was the start of an ongoing project to replace all of the lighting (wherever possible) with LED's both in and outside of Taj. The more entertaining part will be the custom fixtures for the main living area.

Canadian Invasion! :)

2011-02-12T17:05:00.000-08:00

Heidi, myself, and VanDad had the pleasure of finally meeting and visiting with Sandy, who is a part-time Vandweller from Canada and an all around great guy! He stopped by on his way back home from the Quartzsite Az get-together. 

This first-time meeting was actually supposed to take place on last year's return trip but a pretty serious rear end collision prevented it. Luckily, Sandy was okay and, with a bit of work, was able to rebuild the van above back to road worthy status.  

I always enjoy seeing how others go about setting up their vans for mobile living. Sandy is a great craftsman and very resourceful. His van is an excellent example of using doner rigs to provide reasonably priced parts for the build. Even the high top was sourced from a parts van, reconditioned and then installed. It was all very well done!

Last night was particularly enjoyable as our great friend, and fellow VanTramp, Gary stopped by for a few hours as well. It is always a great time with Gary around! 

Comfort through Confidence!

2011-02-04T17:18:00.000-08:00

Heidi and I have always considered comfort in this lifestyle to be high on our priority list. We feel that living a more simple life in a smaller space doesn't mean we have to sacrifice quality of life. Comfort, however, does not only come from suitable or even plush accommodations, rather there are many sources.

A discussion about drivers/vehicle licenses prompted this topic. My viewpoint in that discussion being that having all related licenses and insurance tied to the same state and preferably the same address, would mean less explanation in the event of a traffic stop. Having your bases covered in these areas and others, makes it easier to relax while driving, offering a bit more peace of mind in my experience. Anything that causes uneasy feelings or prevents relaxation, interferes with comfort to some degree. Vehicle maintenance can really influence confidence!

Knowing that you are okay on finances, food, fuel, water etc, also increases confidence and in that, comfort. Now the scenarios that come to my mind are those times when things go unexpectedly wrong. What then? How do you increase your confidence when times can be so uncertain? Easy answer, by being better prepared for those times.

Our blogger friend, Sonja at www.faliaphotography.com, recently made a very detailed post on "bug-out-bags and survival kits" that is well worth reading. Lets face it, things happen otherwise band-aids and fire-extinguishers would be unnecessary. A mechanical problem while remote boondocking could easily put any of us in a survival situation. There are endless scenarios of how it could happen and why being prepared is wise.

To go a step further even, what if you find yourself alone with only the clothes on your back? While it is even more unlikely, it is still possible. In that case, knowledge of very primitive skills would improve your circumstances and perhaps even save your life. By primitive skills, I am referring to the ability to make cordage from plant fiber or bark, make a cutting edge from broken stone, start a fire, find water and ensure it is safe to drink, identify food that can be gathered or hunted/caught, construct a protective shelter, navigate to safety, and signal for help.

Everyone of course has to determine the things that will give them peace of mind as they continue the journey. If you haven't put much thought into it, I encourage you to. As with everything else, I believe finding the right balance is key.

Modification Reviews and Updates

2011-01-28T15:27:00.000-08:00

Before I get too much further on this year's round of "Taj mods", I thought it would be useful to give a bit of a review the previous "upgrades" we have made. Anyone who hasn't seen the original posts detailing the old mods can find them easily by clicking HERE.

Starting in order based on the modifications page:

New curtains: Huge improvement! The color and properties of the material we used was perfect! They block light from showing either direction, provide a bit of insulation and really improved the atmosphere. Lining them was definitely the right move as well.

Switched source fuse box: I added the box to give me control over which battery bank was powering several accessories or to just shut them all off with one switch. The mod was great and works as expected. The accessories run from the box will likely be adjusted. No reason really to have the backup camera run from it and it would be nice to have the stereo available and powered by the coach bank. Thumbs up otherwise!

Wireless backup camera/GPS: Well, this one is a bit questionable. For the money we paid (a hair over $500 total), it was a decent deal. Frank (what we named it) has a few strange quirks. He needs to be "reset" more often than seems reasonable. He is very loud when receiving a camera signal(like loud,radio static) and lacks some of the features of better GPS systems(user defined way-points). He does work fine most of the time for us and because of his multi-functional capability, we will keep him around. I will likely add a tiny speaker cutoff switch this year :)

Cork floor: Can't say enough about this stuff! It is beautiful, durable, easy to keep clean and was the perfect floor covering decision IMO!

New Captain's Chairs: Another great choice! With probably a lot of searching and trial and error, we may have been able to get some that were a little softer but I really like these just fine! One move that I would highly suggest others emulate if they go this route is to get the optional seat heaters. I run them off the coach batteries when we are parked and they are swiveled to the back. They barely effect the battery bank and add an amazing amount of comfort on a cooler night.

Hypervent: I can safely recommend this stuff to anyone who has had to deal with condensation issues under their cushions. Before the install, we were always worried about dampness and potential mold. Now, everything stays dry no matter what the climate we are in. Excellent solution!

Upgraded Inverter Display Panel: This one is a no-brainer for people with Xantrex Pro-Sine Inverter/Chargers. Unlike the not-so-helpful LED version, this digital display shows in real time, Voltage and Amp levels and usage in useful increments rather than large steps. It also adds the ability to configure the Inverter settings remotely.

Picture Frame AC Cover: I still love it :) It dresses the place up nicely!

Custom Center Isle Rug: Also a good choice. What it adds in atmosphere, makes up for its occasional need to be re-aligned and vacuumed! It does a good job with making to floor comfortable and helping with sound deadening.

ProSine Inverter/Charger: Definitely in the top two favorite mods to date. Having the ability to run the toaster oven, microwave, and everything else that we care about in the 110V category has been wonderful! I really got an amazing deal on it used, but if it ever failed, I wouldn't hesitate to buy a direct replacement at new prices.

Shower Re-Engineering Project: This wins as the favorite! It was definitely the most work, but the difference is amazing! The shower went from being convenient and adequate to being extremely comfortable, roomy and both Heidi and my favorite shower! Worth every second of work I put in!

Tank Monitor Panel Move: While this was pretty much a necessity to allow the shower mods, it was a huge improvement in convenience! Having the panel and switches out where they can be easily accessed just makes life in Taj that much easier and more comfortable.

New Cushion Foam: I don't know how much they improved the comfort if at all, but they sure smell better than the odiferous ones that were in there when I bought Taj!

There are many more mods that I admit to not having blogged about yet, but I promise I will fairly soon :) I have to get that done actually, this years round of mods is already in process!

Pig and Conrad

2011-01-26T10:35:00.000-08:00

This is Pig and Conrad. Conrad is Michael's coffee cu.... mug! Conrad doesn't like to be referred to as a cup; he feels "mug" is a more masculine description. Don't even try putting him on a saucer, as he's still trying to forget the indignity of Mom subjecting him to one. Pig just doesn't have those issues.

The payoff of research.

2011-01-22T12:36:00.000-08:00

I am sure I have mentioned before that both Heidi and I are kind of research nuts. Lately, she has been learning and trying out recipes for things we used to purchase. Last week she improved her already excellent method of making Teriyaki glaze and last night, we enjoyed another of her successful adaptations, home made "shake & bake" for chicken. It was much nummier than store bought!

What may not be obvious about this particular area of research is why it is such a cool thing for our mobile lifestyle. Aside from the cost savings and the great benefit of knowing what you are ingesting, there is another aspect that is equally as valuable; Storage space. One of the criteria we consider when purchasing anything to go in our Vanhome is whether the item has more than one use. The concept is similar in this case as well. The basic goal being the ability to replace a bunch of normally store bought items with a few basic, easily stored ingredients and a bit of knowledge. Trust me, this is a worthwhile pursuit!

I have been focusing much of my research efforts on finding a better alternative to the inefficient, currently non-functional furnace in Taj. Heidi's desire to put a wood stove in a van has prompted me to consider less common alternatives as well. Not a wood stove though, rather a very small, direct vent LP fireplace. I will do an in depth post on what I settle on and why hopefully soon.

The image above is completely unrelated to this post, but I hate blogging without a picture of something :) That shot is of Lake Crescent, which is about 10 miles from us at the moment. It really is about the most beautiful lake I have seen anywhere. For someone who grew up mostly in MN, that is saying something! I will leave you with a few more pictures, none of which do it justice. Read here for some interesting details about this lake.

Always learning!

2011-01-14T19:31:00.000-08:00

Heidi and I love to learn and come up with solutions to the various problems we encounter. We really had no shortage of learning opportunities this past year! Taj, who is very reliable usually, decided to throw us a few curves in the way of, the coach water pump, the furnace, and the LP ignitor on the fridge all failing one right after the other. We decided rather than just repairing them on the road, to use simple methods of adjusting to the situation until I was in a better place to make my typical upgrades.

The water pump was the least pleasant of our losses and the most work to compensate for. We purchased a 5 gallon water bottle and hand pump for drinking water & cooking. We picked up a solar shower bag which got very little use, it was enough of a hassle that we often spent a five bucks for a shower in town instead. We also refilled a few extra gallon jugs when we would go to town (for flushing the toilet). It really surprised me as to how much more often we had to go to town with this situation. Between the showers and the refilling water bottles, it was at least every other day. I really missed Taj's 37 gallon tanks and our more comfortable shower!

The desert gets pretty cold at night, especially without the furnace! Lots of blankets and hot water bottles did a reasonable job of keeping us warm, but come morning, that hot coffee was really appreciated! I have to say too that the seat heaters in the front captains chairs saved my butt, literally :) I was really glad I chose to run them off the coach batteries! They did a good job of keeping me warm while watching movies in the evening.

Heidi really got into experimenting with ways to go without a fridge. Enough ways that I am going to ask her to do a separate more detailed post on it here next.

We have heard many times how some believe it is better to just go simple rather than having all the complex systems that make up an RV. The biggest thing I learned by having to compensate for the failures of those "systems" was that we really appreciate having them! Things break. Being comfortable on the road is very important to us since it is our home! When there are system failures, we can still survive just fine using the simple methods that anyone with a basic van might use to get by as needed until those systems are repaired. There is no question about which we prefer!

Washington

2011-01-10T14:27:00.000-08:00

After a long and pretty much uneventful drive, Heidi and I made it back to Port Angeles on Thursday. We already miss our friends in Quartzsite and those that we had looked forward to meeting, but realize even more now that this was the right move. I already feel much better.

Now that we are back and somewhat recovered from the drive, our focus is returning to our projects and plans for the future. Heidi has been busy working on "Charlie", the van she had when we met. Since her ultimate "Vanstead" needs to be based on a diesel powered van, Charlie is only being utilized as an experimental lab of sorts. It is fun for me to watch her clever mind work and her ideas come to life!

I always have a large list of ideas and projects which I will be blogging about as they progress. This year though, I am going to share a bit more of my hobbies with you all as well.

I seem to have fly fishing on the brain lately. The Olympic Peninsula is full of beautiful rivers & streams and this year I plan to spend a lot more time on them pursuing those tasty salmon and trout! Though not nearly as plentiful as the fish, there is a little gold in a few of those creeks as well and I just wouldn't feel right about leaving it out there!

This is the result from a previous prospecting adventure. Quite a few more hours were involved in recovering what you see than I care to admit, but my motive is fun rather than profit so I can live with it!

It is time for me to get back in shape! My trusty mountain bike is going to get a bunch of miles put on it soon (Not from hanging on Taj's rack). I have some ideas on how to build in some very effective exercise equipment into Taj as well and look forward to blogging about it!

Speaking of Taj, there are a ton of other projects planned for her. A very custom solar panel installation is just one of the things I have in store. Lots of fun is coming!

Next post: What we learned this year, which is behind many of the projects we now have planned.